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Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Meet Jack Davis from FINALLY A BRIDE, and a giveaway!

Should have posted this yesterday and got distracted by my 500th post. But I'm delighted to bring you a glance into Finally a Bride by Vickie McDonough, in the form of a fun introduction to the heroine of the book.

Vickie's offering a copy of the book to one lucky winner, so leave a comment below with an email address for a chance to win!

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Hello, Jacqueline Hamilton Davis, and thank you so much for talking with me today! To begin, could you just tell us a little bit about yourself?

First off, call me Jack. My ma hates that nickname, but Jacqueline is too big of a mouthful, and I never liked it. I’ve live my whole live in a small Texas town called Lookout. The first half of my life was hard. My ma was trying to raise me the best she knew how, but I didn’t make things easy for her. I hated school. Hated dresses, and just wanted to fish with my two friends, Ricky and Jimmy. Then Luke came back to town. I knew right away there was something between him and ma because she got all jittery, like she had fleas in her drawers, and she got cranky when he came around. I reckon you could say they worked out their differences, because they’ve been married a long while now and have given me some siblings. And don’t get me started on them.

I’m a reporter and all around grunt worker at the town’s newspaper, the Lookout Ledger. It’s my dream to leave this dusty, little town and get a job as a reporter for a big newspaper in Dallas. All I need is to land some scoop on a few big stories, and then I’m outta this puny town for good.

What’s one of your most interesting traits?

Hmm. . .I reckon Ma would say that I’m fearless. I’ll do just about anything to get my story, and that does get me in some uncomfortable predicaments at times. But what’s life without some challenges? Did you ever hear the saying that ‘quiet women never make history?’ Well, I’m not one of those quiet women. I’ve got dreams, and I intend to make history.

What’s your favorite indulgence?

Sneaking off to the church or some place else that’s quiet and spending time writing or reading a good book. I love my sisters and brother, but those little critters are noisy. And sharing a room with two young girls doesn’t allow for much alone—or quiet—time.
What do you fear more than anything else?

Being a failure. Not succeeding in my career as a newspaper reporter and not getting a job in Dallas. Never leaving Lookout.

Who’s your favorite person in the world (whether they’re still with you or not), and why?

I don’t guess a dog counts. Max, an old yellow dog, was my best friend for a long while, but I’d have to say it’s now Luke, my stepfather. He became my friend and changed my life, even though he did scold me at times. I hate disappointing him, and I can’t imagine what life would have ended up like for Ma and me if God hadn’t brought Luke into our lives.

If you could change one part of your past, undo one decision, what would it be?

Just one? A tomboy like me has plenty of things she’d like to undo. Hmm…I guess I wish I would have been nicer to the town bully, Butch Laird. He was my nemesis, years ago. After he and his pa moved away from Lookout, I realized how hard a life he had. I wasn’t very nice to him, but then he did stink like a pig sty, and he picked fights. Oh, and he even locked me in jail one time. I’m gettin’ mad just thinkin’ about that. We’d better move on to the next question before I get spittin’ mad at Butch all over again.

If you could travel anywhere, to any time, where would you go and why?

I’d like to travel into the future, to a time where women have more rights. Where a female isn’t looked down on if she wants to wear pants while pulling weeds in a garden or riding a horse astride. A time when a woman can hold any kind of job she’d like and get paid a fair wage for doing so.

What’s the most surprising thing someone has ever said about you?

The most surprising thing wasn’t something someone said, it was something that bully Butch did. He painted some awful words on the walls all over town—words about me! Embarrassed me so much I was ashamed to show my face in town for months—and I lived in town. I went looking for him that day, intending to knock the tar out of him, but that lily-livered chicken-hearted skunk had left town. Luke says God is the one to extract vengeance, but I’m not sure what I’d do if I ever saw Butch again. I’d probably wallop him and just hope God understood.

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About Finally a Bride

Jacqueline Davis, a reporter for the Lookout Ledger, is bent on nabbing her story at any cost. When Noah Jeffers comes to Lookout as temporary pastor, Jack suspects there may be something hidden behind his shepherding ways. Soon though, Jack becomes attracted to the new pastor despite her initial hesitation. But as she uncovers the truth, will the story cost her too much? Will she reveal what she’s found, or keep it hidden to protect newfound love?

Carly Payton returns to Lookout after years in prison, hoping to build a new life there. But she soon discovers that new beginnings and second chances are not always easy. Garrett Corbett is determined to marry—but not a jailbird like Carly. When Carly is equally repelled by Garrett’s prank-playing ways, will they see past their dislikes and give each other—and love—a second look?

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About Vickie

Vickie McDonough is an award-winning author of 23 books and novellas. Her books have won the Inspirational Reader's Choice Contest, Texas Gold, the ACFW Noble Theme contest, and she has been a multi-year finalist in ACFW’s BOTY/Carol Awards. She was voted Third Favorite Author in the Heartsong Presents Annual Readers Contest in 2009. Vickie is the author of the fun and feisty Texas Boardinghouse Brides series from Barbour Publishing. Watch for her new book this October. Long Trail Home from Moody Publishing, is book 3 in Texas Trails: A Morgan Family series, in which she partners with Susan Page Davis and Darlene Franklin to write a 6-book series that spans 50 years of the Morgan family. The first three books release this fall. Also, next year brings the release of another new series from Guidepost Books, Whispers on the Prairie, set in 1870s Kansas. Vickie hopes readers will find her stories An Adventure into Romance.

Vickie and her husband live in Oklahoma. She is a wife of thirty-five years, mother of four grown sons and grandma to a feisty four-year-old girl. When she’s not writing, Vickie enjoys reading, gardening, watching movies, and traveling. To learn more about Vickie’s books, visit her website: www.vickiemcdonough.com

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Thanks so much for visiting, Vickie, and giving us that fun insight into Jack. She sounds like a lot of fun. =) Readers, be sure and check out Vickie's site at www.vickiemcdonough.com. You can purchase Finally a Bride at Amazon and ChristianBook.

Void where prohibited. Entry into the contest is considered verification of eligibility based on your local laws. Chance of winning depends on number of entries. Contest ends 4/14/11. Winner will have two weeks to claim prize.

Such FUN! What a great interview ~ thank you for posting it! I haven't read Ms. McDonough's books yet, (I know. Where have I been?!) but I'm looking forward to adding her to my ever-growing to-read list! Thank you for the opportunity to win!

This is such a great book!! I just finished reading it the other day! Please don't enter me in the drawing! I just wanted to comment on how much I loved this series!! Finally a Bride was my favorite book of the series!

Roseanna, you did a great job with pinning down Jack! I just read this book and it was fabulous, as is the whole series. Wouldn't it be fun if someday if Vickie wrote another series where Jack was the mom and got a taste of her own medicine! Great characters. Vickie???